Before the advent of networked systems and computers, medical patient workflow including the entry and maintenance of patient information in medical records, was typically a manual process that involved recording patient information using paper-based forms. As the use of computers at medical practices has become more widespread, many healthcare providers have adopted procedures to enter most (or all) patient information using electronic health records (EHRs) so that the information may be readily accessible to doctors, nurses, or other clinical staff who require it. The increased accessibility of patients' medical information afforded by EHRs is just one of several factors which provide improvements over more conventional paper-based data management systems. For example, provided such data is accompanied by appropriate security measures, data stored in EHRs may be more conveniently copied to another location for backup purposes and EHRs may be more easily transferred from one hospital or clinic to another than traditional paper-based medical files. Yet another potential advantage of EHRs is the ability to store large quantities of data from a variety of sources including laboratory results, imaging results, and medical histories in a cohesive manner.
To assist with processing and managing EHRs, some medical practices may contract with a third party which provides a practice management system for managing healthcare data and facilitating patient workflows. For example, the practice management system may be a network-based system that enables medical practitioners and other medical practice staff to manage electronic health information for patients of a medical practice. The practice management system may, among other things, facilitate the management and storage of information related to patient visits, lab results, current medications, etc. to facilitate patient care at the medical practice.